VM environments are more complex than is sometimes assumed; they always consist of a minimum of two different elements. The base element in a VM computing environment is the host server. This is sometimes called a ‘resource pool’ because it is here that VMs will look for the resources they need to complete their jobs. In addition, however, a second element must exist. This is the production area, in which work is actually done. This area of the system is actually maintained by the virtual machines themselves.

The system described above is minimalistic. In a real-world virtual environment setting, there are often other elements or system areas, each of which is designed and set up to perform a specific needed function. Examples of optional environments include ones devoted to testing, development, or training.

Basic Protection for a Virtual Environment

One of the most important IT solutions for virtualized computing is an environment that separates all virtual machines from the host server. This will serve as a base of protection for the VMs that can be augmented with other strategies.

Another basic data security strategy is to pay close attention to the organization of storage utilized by any particular virtual machine. Some hypervisor programs will distribute the files a VM needs to many different locations as part of a storage optimization strategy. More data security is present, however, when managed programs staff set a VM to store all its needed data in one location such as a specific folder. This allows for strict access controls to be applied to that location.